ELIZABETH -- I love the tribal designs. I think that they would be adorable in a nursery and be great as the child gets a little older also. Since you are new to cross stitch you probably haven't read my postings about following directions. I almost always change some of the colors. There are no rules. Think outside the box.

White Willow usually recommends 28 ct fabric. I, personally, prefer 14 ct aida and only stitching over one. It will be the same finished size as 28 ct over two.

The giraffe is darling. The "suggested" floss listed on this site is #307. It is a soft yellow. I think that this is an error. The picture looks like it is a variegated floss. That would be great.

Since this is for a child, I recommend that you not use the dark green suggested fabric. Pick something bright. Yellow, orange, bright pink, etc.

There are some wonderful tribal patterns. I like the chimp and the rhino also. You can stitch each one on a different color fabric.

This sounds like a fun project. Maybe you have a friend or a sister who would like to help.

I am very excited about this -- please keep us posted.

Love those tribal designs, too! Good choice.

I love these designs too...doing the Starfish fo my great-grandson, who is five, lives in Phoenix Arizona and loved checking out our nearby tide pools with my DH. He especially enjoyed the starfish. I also have the Tribal Flamingo to do for my friend who is crazy about flamingoes. I also have the crab and lobster, I think. Elephant I have seen was cute.

I would NOT use a white background for these, but pick a nicely contrasting 14 count, since you are newer stitcher. They will stand out great! I have been doing counted cross stitch since 1952 and so I have my favorites. You can find colors in fabric on this site or at 123stitch.com
For a big thrill, check out the hand-dyed fabrics at picturethisplus.com
You click on "online store" on the left side of their home page and then on "PTP fabrics". It will give you two choices. One is their hand dyed and the other are "crystal" fabrics (with a bit higher price) have sparkles woven into the fabric. I don't use the crystal unless I want the fabric to compete with the design, like a one color silhouette. I wouldn't use PTP fabrics for the tribal animals unless you have no issues with price. I save their stuff for special gifts. I use it for plain silhouettes, not tribal...I want the viewer to enjoy my stitching of the tribal designs.

For floss, I like the variegated floss, some done by hand. DMC has some called "variations". My favorite is Weeks Dye Works because nearly every single color is colorfast. Other brands may say so, but require you to pre-wash or pre-rinse before using, which is a pain...I hate the time away from stitching, hate floss hanging all over the place and waiting until they hang dry (afraid because floss is cotton that it may shrink in a dryer, even if you use a lingerie bag to not lose it in the dryer.

As I said, I am an old lady with my own prejudices, but all of us on this chat have our ownbset ways and preferences. Other questions? My email is pittsuze63@yahoo.com. Happy to help and not repeat all this info for the other older stitchers. Love the idea of the animals in nursery!

Thanks for all of the advice!! I am excited to get started. I already purchased the elephant pattern, a 14ct Nordic blue fabric and DMC cotton thread, like a pearl grey. I didn't know it had to be washed? What is the reason for that? Like I said I am very new and never took a class or really read a book. Just a few notes here and there online.

Thanks!!

Hello,

I have updated the pattern description for this design on the website. It comes straight from the booklet itself and White Willow usually has 2 different options for stitchers to choose from. One being the Model on the front cover and the other that is in the color key inside the booklet. Stitchers can still choose to use any color of fabric or floss though. I hope the new description helps clarify some things. Thank you :)

~Kristi @ ECS

Hi Elizabeth,
You didn't know WHAT had to be washed? If you are speaking of the floss, and you are using DMC floss, you don't have to wash it. It is colorfast. If it is the fabric you are buying or have bought, that might be a different story.... I've worked with different color fabrics and never washed them until after my stitching is completed. I think some stitchers do wash their fabric before they begin to stitch....
Oh, since you're new to stitching, Wash your finished stitching in cool water with a bit of dishwashing liquid and rinse in cool water. DO NOT USE THE "STEAM" setting on an iron (I had a variegated floss "bleed" on my fabric; you'll understand that I won't go into detail or my verbage when I had that happen :)) because of that. Do not wring your completed fabric out after rinsing; squeeze excess water out gently, roll the completed project in a towel to get rid of excess water, then lay on top of clean towel and let dry naturally.
Hope this helps! And looking forward to hearing how your baby's giraffe and elephant patterns work out!